Arrangements
by jessara40k
Summary: Cetra Retoration AU. Brangwen only applied for Cloud's personal guard to avoid disappointing her cousin, Morvoren, but she found happiness and love as a result. Eventual yuri Brangwen/Elena. Slavery. Elena and Cloud are in recent chapters
1. Chapter 1

Morvoren _didn't_ like it that Cloud and Sephiroth would be unguarded even while Captain Aaron held this meeting of Cloud's personal guard, but at least he was still a minor for a few more days, and would accept not being allowed to leave the building if someone needed to stop him. And Sephiroth was always obedient, at least with her and the other guards; he understood that since it was their job to give their lives for him if necessary it was a bad idea to make it harder for them to protect him. There was a focused silence in the room as the last man arrived, and Morvoren was certain that she wasn't the only one who intended to 'discuss' his late arrival with Brian at a later time.

"Now that everyone's here there's two issues you all need to be aware of." At least the captain was getting right down to business. "Sephiroth is keeping Cloud busy for a while, so we're not under the time pressure we might be otherwise, but I don't want to take too long, so save any comments or questions until I'm finished. I'll let Morgan talk first, because _his_ issue's going to directly impact on mine."

"Right, once Cloud's a legal adult I stop being his tutor." Morvoren hadn't really considered that before, that Cloud's guard might lose Morgan's advice, or that Cloud would lose his advice when he turned sixteen, but it was true. "He asked me to become Sephiroth's first bodyguard instead. I can recruit or buy up to four others to help me, but I'd rather not resort to slaves, or risk surrounding him with people who have problems with him. Cloud's given his permission for me to recruit from his personal guard, and Aaron's agreed to let me make my pitch to you all." That sounded...odd. They were already two men down, why would the captain take the risk of losing up to four _more_ warriors? But it had to be true, since it would be pretty stupid for Morgan to bring this up in front of Aaron if it wasn't.

"Sephiroth probably needs bodyguards in a way Cloud doesn't. I know you aren't just his bodyguards, but the Planet's Weapon _can_ protect himself if he has to, Sephiroth _can't_ no matter how good he is at forms or against Reeve's robots, and I'm sure you can imagine how badly it would affect Cloud if Sephiroth was killed. Everyone here already knows this, knows about how vulnerable Sephiroth is, we _like_ him - far too many don't, they hate him for things he can't control. I've talked to Aaron, and I think I can manage for a year with just one other dedicated bodyguard, with help from you, and then I'd like to recruit three more of you to round the unit out. There's two things you need to consider. We all know that Cloud will need a spouse one day, and one of the groups he could find one is among his female guards, but _Sephiroth's_ female bodyguards aren't acceptable. Even if they were I doubt he'd be willing to endanger his consort by taking one of his bodyguards away from him. The other thing is that as Sephiroth's bodyguards we'll have more limited duties, and far less in the way of variation." Morgan glanced at Aaron then, and he stepped forward to take over.

"Could anyone who's interested in moving to Sephiroth's bodyguard unit, now or in a year, talk about it with Morgan some time in the next week please." Morvoren wasn't she liked the wide variety of challenges she faced as Cloud's guard, but she knew some of the others might be, either because they wanted something a bit more predictable, or because they agreed with what Morgan was saying - or because they didn't want to be even considered as Cloud's spouse, not that he'd force anyone to do that for him.

"We need to recruit at least two more guards, possibly three, within the next month or so, and then we might recruit three more in a year, if Morgan gets all the transfers he wants. So, if you know anyone suitable, or even think you know someone who might work out as a recruit, come and talk to me, in the next few days if you can."

Brangwen wasn't ready yet, but in a year she might be, especially if Morvoren gave her a reason to make an effort to get more experience. And if three new positions were going to open up then it would give Morvoren a year to talk Brangwen into applying for the trials despite her woeful lack of self-confidence.

"Dismissed." In other words get back to what they were supposed to be doing, but Morvoren was off duty and had just finished her training for the day. She threaded her way forward against the flow of guards leaving the room, getting to Aaron just as he was about to follow Morgan out through the other door.

"Morvoren. Did you have someone you can recommend, or did you want to speak with Morgan?"

"What? No." It hadn't occurred to her that Aaron might think she was interested in leaving Cloud's guard. "I _like_ being part of Cloud's personal guard, I enjoy the challenges it brings. But I've got a cousin. She's only eighteen," A few months short of her nineteenth birthday, "so she isn't ready to apply for a place with us yet, but if there's going to be three openings, or any openings at all, in a years time, I believe she'd be up to the standards of our recruits by then." They began walking together, Morvoren following Aaron's lead regarding direction.

"You _do_ need to talk to Morgan then, or at least ask him to keep you informed about how his recruiting is going. But I'm glad you don't want to leave. There's few enough women in Cloud's guard as it is." He must mean as espousal candidates, which would give Brangwen an additional factor in her favour when she applied.

"I think I might be a bit old for the role of Cloud's spouse if it comes to that." She was eight years older than he was after all, and even if he preferred older lovers it would be his potential spouse's fertility that was the deciding factor in his choice.

"I wasn't talking about that, not really - although you _are_ younger than his consort is. I don't want him to pick up the attitude a lot of humans seem to have about women, that they, that you, aren't equal to men - and his mother and Isis both help to encourage that idea."

"I seriously doubt Cloud would ever entertain that idea, not with how easily Aeris can bully him and Sephiroth into doing what she wants."

"I find that hard to imagine." Because he hadn't been involved in some of Aeris' schemes no doubt. Morvoren just shrugged.

"Well, maybe 'bully' is too strong a word. But he certainly respects her wit and her persuasiveness. I should go and talk to Morgan now."

"Yes, certainly. He'll be pleased to know that you expect him to have enough volunteers to fill his unit."


	2. Chapter 2

"I'm sorry Morvoren; I don't think I can keep this up any longer." Brangwen slowly stepped back away from her cousin, keeping her axes up in guard position until she was out of Morvoren's reach. Sparring with Morvoren was just too fast paced and energy intensive for her to keep it up for long, especially with the way her cousin would offer criticism and advice during their bouts.

"Very well." Morvoren glanced at her watch as she lowered her sword. "You lasted longer than last month, by five minutes, and your skill level is improving."

"Thanks." Brangwen walked over to join Morvoren when she sat down to take care of her sword. "I _still_ missed a lot of that running critique you give me though, so we need to go over that again." She was expecting Morvoren to ask her what she remembered, the way she normally did, but instead her cousin frowned and put her sword down before reaching to stop Brangwen working on her own weapons.

"Not yet. There's something else I wanted to talk with you about first." From the look on her face this was going to be important, and Brangwen put her swords down so she could pay total attention to her cousin and what she wanted.

"Go ahead then." If it was something she could do, something she could give, then Brangwen would give it, and gladly. Morvoren had been so good to her, teaching her when she'd grown beyond what her parents could offer, and she'd let Brangwen down kindly when she'd gotten that crush on her three years ago.

"There are a lot more men than women in Cloud's personal guard, I'm not sure why that is, if earlier captains were biased against women, or if it was just that more men applied, and so more of them got through, but it's how things ended up." Morvoren paused and Brangwen nodded, acknowledging her words, even though she wasn't sure how it was relevant. "Captain Aaran is very keen on the idea of Cloud having more female guards, to counteract that human gender roles crap Isis and his mother seem to buy into, and since Morgan's recruiting for Sephiroth's bodyguards there's going to be three openings in just under a year."

"Human gender roles?" Brangwen couldn't see what those had to do with the number of women in the Planet's Weapon's guard, or why Morvoren was telling her this.

"You know how sometimes human men are surprised when they contract with the family for a warrior caste guard and you're the one who turns up?" Brangwen nodded, Morvoren had told her not to let it bother her when she'd brought it up after a sparring session just over 18 months ago, and now she sometimes got clients specifically requesting her. "They reacted that way because it's pretty rare for human women to know how to fight, even now."

"I can see that, I guess. I mean, there's more of a difference in strength levels and all that between the sexes in humans than there is for us." Morvoren looked surprised by her reaction, not that Brangwen could see why. "What?"

"I hadn't considered it that way. Do you really think strength is the most important thing in learning how to fight?"

"Of course not, but...it takes more work to learn how to fight and stay in shape for fighting if you aren't naturally strong and if you have to learn a style that is based on speed or precision." Brangwen shrugged as she spoke. "It's the same thing as healer caste who learn to fight using a different style to us, even if they learn as children. We focus more on power, and on the advantages our activation ritual will give us, even before we go through it, they tend to learn more deflection, and focus on precision and how to use an opponent's strength against them."

"Hmmm. I'm not entirely convinced, and I'm pretty sure there's a flaw in your argument somewhere, but that doesn't really matter. What does matter is that I want you to apply for one of the three positions in Cloud's guard that will be coming open in a year."

"Morvoren..." Brangwen bit her lip, trying to work out how to put it and deciding to be blunt. "I'm not good enough for that." She looked away from her cousin in shame, wishing that she was a better fighter, with the sort of stamina and skills Morvoren had.

"Brangwen, look at me." Morvoren rested her hand on Brangwen's near shoulder, leaving it in place until she obeyed, turning back to her cousin and leaning into the hand she raised to rest on Brangwen's right cheek. "No, you aren't up to the standards of Cloud's personal guard, not yet. You aren't even up to the standard of the recruits to his personal guard." That hurt, it was true, and Brangwen knew it, but still, she'd hoped her cousin would tell her she was underestimating herself. Other than Morvoren she was one of the best fighters in the family, certainly the best who still contracted through the family, but she knew she was almost stalled in her progress because she usually sparred against the others who contracted through the family.

"Then why ask me to apply?" Her voice was harsh, almost angry, but that was better than letting her pain show.

"Because I think you've got the _potential_ to reach the same level as Cloud's guard, and if you work at it, you _will_ be good enough to be accepted by the time those openings are available."

"You do?" The hope she felt at that was almost painful - it wasn't so much about the idea of being accepted into the Planet's Weapon's personal guard, despite the honour that would be for her, as about the fact that her cousin had such confidence in her abilities. "Just tell me what I'll have to do then. I train for at least an hour every day, longer if I have time. Should I do more training? Or should I train differently?"

"You probably need to train differently. I can't really teach you new moves, not the best options, because you use two axes, each of them lighter than my sword. All I can do is correct the things that stay the same whatever weapon you use, or point out openings in your defences. And I don't know exactly how you train, but I doubt you're sparring against anyone better than you, except for these monthly spars with me."

"No, I'm not." It hadn't mattered so much three years ago, even if her lessons with Morvoren had been limited, before her activation ritual she'd always been able to spar against someone stronger and faster than her, even if they weren't as skilled, but now..."There aren't that many people willing to spar with me at all, not among the family."

"I see." Morvoren let go of Brangwen and twisted to pull something from her pack. "Then I have three suggestions. First, I've found you a teacher for your style, or at least your preferred weapons mix and I've booked your first lesson with him. It's the day after tomorrow, in the morning, and here's the details." She handed the small folder from her back over to Brangwen with a smile. "I paid for the first lesson, but you'll need to pay for the rest, and I'd recommend at least one lesson every two weeks, ideally each lesson at least two hours long." She could probably afford that, depending on how much he charged. "Second, you should find a younger cousin, someone who's just starting to learn how to fight, and offer to teach her the basics. That will force you to look at them again yourself, and refine your own skills, which will have an effect on everything you've learned since then." Brangwen nodded, Ian, her nephew, was just ready to start learning to fight - but he was human, so his father wasn't likely to arrange anything.

"My brother's son, Ian, he's human and just old enough to start learning how to fight, would offering to teach him be a good idea for my development?"

"I can't see what difference that makes at that age, yes, he'd be fine." Morvoren sounded impatient, and just a bit annoyed. "But stick with it; give him at least three hours a week. The third thing is to use the registry halls, and train there as well as with our family, find someone who's on your level, or preferably a bit higher when you're sparring there."

"I should have thought of that myself." Brangwen knew she was blushing from the heat in her cheeks - that was a resource available to everyone who'd registered as a qualified guard, of whatever level, but none of the family had ever used it to her knowledge, so it had slipped her mind.

"Yes, you should have." But mercifully Morvoren left it at that. "Now, do you want me to go over the problems I caught during our spar?"

"Yes, please." Brangwen followed Morvoren's example by picking up her axes again and working on them as she told her cousin what she remembered from her commentary.


	3. Chapter 3

"Enough." Aaran was pleased to see that Brangwen disengaged from Brian as soon as he spoke, actually responding a bit faster than the guard did, and stepping back, out of his reach before she lowered her axes.

"Delphine, I'll want to see you sparring with Orion next." The blonde nodded and moved forward to wait for her opponent "Brangwen, come over here."

"Sir?" She glanced over at Sephiroth briefly as she approached them, a quick assessing look, and Aaran could see that she was wary of him, even though she came over anyway.

"This is Sephiroth, Cloud's consort." And the caution disappeared, even though she was close enough to catch Sephiroth's faintly alien scent from the heavy work-out he'd just finished when Aaran brought today's candidates here. "Sephiroth, this is Brangwen."

"Hello Sephiroth." She held her hands out to him, palm up in greeting, with a smile on her face, and to Sephiroth's credit he only paused for a fraction of a second before gripping her forearms from above.

"Brangwen. You didn't need to greet me as a superior. I'm not."

"I have to disagree, at least in this situation. You're part of the interview process for me today, and at a guess I'd say you were supposed to decide if I'd be able to work under the Planet's Weapon, or if I'd cause problems for him."

"Something like that." Sephiroth actually had a faint smile on his face as he responded; Brangwen was the first candidate he'd seen get any emotional response so far.

"Go." But Aaran was _listening_ to how Brangwen interacted with Sephiroth, even as he watched Delphine spar with Orion.

"Would you mind if we did this somewhere I can take care of my axes then?"

"No, not at all, there's a bench over there."

"Thank you." Brangwen seemed to hesitate, before she asked Sephiroth if he wanted to comment on her performance while sparring, and they actually kept the conversation _going_ until Aaran decided he'd seen enough of Delphine's performance.

"Enough." This time it was Orion who reacted first, but Delphine didn't take more than a second longer and she turned to him waiting for more instructions. "Orion, would you give Delphine a tour of our facilities, please. Deliver her to my office for her interview in an hour."

"Yes sir. Come on, we can start with the armoury."

"Very well." It was a shame to break into Brangwen's conversation with Sephiroth considering how well they seemed to be getting along, but Aaran knew that he didn't really have time to let them talk themselves out. "Brangwen, I need you for a final interview now."

"You could do Delphine first?" Aaran was almost tempted to accept Brangwen just for getting that sort of reaction from Sephiroth, but it would be unprofessional to accept her here and now, and he had better reasons to choose her, unless he got three candidates who totally outclassed her in the next two days. She wasn't the best candidate at any one thing, but she was above the minimums in everything, well above them in a few areas, and Aaran liked her attitude.

"No, I've already sent her off on a tour of the facilities. Sorry Sephiroth."

"I understand. It was interesting to talk with you Brangwen." They both stood up as Sephiroth spoke, and Brangwen simply smiled at Sephiroth in response. "Captain, is there anything else you'd like me to do?"

"If you'd tell Morvoren to meet me outside my office in an hour I'd appreciate it."

"Very well." Sephiroth nodded, glancing once at Brangwen before leaving, and she frowned after him.

"Is there a problem Brangwen?"

"No sir. I just don't get why he was so...I don't know...surprised that I greeted him as my better, or so...satisfied with our conversation. I mean, I was polite, and I enjoyed talking with him, but I didn't do anything special. And all we were talking about was my performance and choice of weapons, well that and commenting a bit on how Delphine was doing."

"Well...he is a consort after all." Aaran shrugged, doing his best to look indifferent, rather than risk giving away any of the secrets Cloud's guard kept, and he started moving, forcing Brangwen to follow him, and hopefully distract her.

"And most of us assume that means he's helpless, so he's not used to people recognising his skill with weapons. I guess that makes sense, even if I'd have to be stupid not to see it when he'd just finished working out, but he's the Planet's Weapon's consort, that means he outranks a commoner like me in everything but a military context." That showed an unexpectedly subtle grasp of social niceties, one Aaran hadn't seen in any of the other recruits so far - he'd have to explain a bit more then.

"And high nobles outrank him in just about everything. He usually only interacts with Cloud's household, and with high nobles, but I think he assumes outsiders, people who aren't part of Cloud's household, will treat him like an inferior and he doesn't quite get why we give him the respect he's due."

"I see." And it sounded as if she disapproved, better and better. Aaran led Brangwen into his office, and decided to use the soft chairs and round table for this interview, instead of facing her across his desk.

"Sit down please." He waved a hand vaguely at the cushioned seats before collecting her file and a pen from his desk. "I've got a total of ten candidates for the three available positions in Cloud's guard. So, tell me what you think makes you stand out from the rest."

"How many of those candidates were personally recommended by one of your current guards? I know how to deal with my superiors, and how to handle them without insulting them if I need them out of my way so I can protect them. I've also cross-trained on other weapons combinations, as well as on a single, larger axe. And axes are an unusual choice of weapons anyway, as is choosing to use two weapons instead of just one, both of which gives me some advantage over my opponents, in that it's an element of surprise. Having me there to train against will also give the guards who prefer swords experience in dealing with an axe-wielder."

"Hmmm." She'd made some good points there, even if he'd already considered most of them himself, although..."Your response sounded almost rehearsed. Did Morvoren warn you to expect this question?"

"No, but I knew I'd have to sell myself if I wanted to get one of the places open, so I sat down and worked out all my good points, and found as much information as I could on the current membership of the Planet's Weapon's guard."

"I see." That made Brangwen the third candidate to show that sort of foresight, although it sounded as if a lack of confidence was in there somewhere. "So, what do you think is your biggest weakness?"

"I'm not as good a fighter as Morvoren is, I'm not good enough to boast by letting my hair grow long the way she does. But I'm willing to devote as much time as you think I need to devote to improving, and I can be fairly creative in how I fight." A definite lack of confidence there, but he could work with that, and Brangwen only said she wasn't good enough to boast, Morvoren _was_ exceptional after all. Aaran continued the interview, even though it was really more a formality than anything else now, and handed her over to Morvoren before facing the interview with Delphine.


	4. Chapter 4

Elena was clearly restless, not that Scarlet could blame her - it was unnerving to be brought to the Planet's Weapon's home as part of Rowan's courtship, and Scarlet wasn't happy about the way his consort had left making these arrangements to Tseng. She'd made the arrangements for their visit to Rowan, but that was because Rowan hadn't found a consort, and she wasn't sure if it was a case of Sephiroth not feeling comfortable making arrangements for them, or a subtle insult.

"Scarlet, do you know if there's anywhere I can go to practise my mariatha?" This was something she could deal with, and Scarlet found Elena's clear uncertainty kind of cute - although she did wish Tseng had told them where they were allowed to go, or assigned them a slave to show them around.

"There should be somewhere we can adapt if we have to. I'll go and find out. Cathryn, Nadia, do you want to practise your mariatha as well?"

"Yes please."

"If that would be possible." Nadia had to be really bored then, she'd made sure Tseng had someone available to spend time with him throughout the time he was visiting Rowan, but he'd probably assumed they could entertain each other. A fair enough assumption, although she did wish they'd had a slave placed at their disposal for any errands or to give them directions if they needed or wanted to go anywhere during their visit. Scarlet shook herself mentally and walked out of the room, looking for someone she could ask for directions - it would probably be a bad idea to ask someone who was busy with something else, but if she had to then she would.

"Can I help you madam?" Scarlet wasn't sure who the woman who stopped her was, but she could tell that she was a warrior caste Cetra from the glow in her eyes, so probably one of the Planet's Weapon's guards, a conclusion reinforced by the axes at her hips. She certainly didn't have looks going for her, with muscles like a man's, breasts that were barely a handful, mousy brown hair, cut in a short mannish style, emphasising how much her face looked like a man's too.

"Are you always this polite to slaves? And yes, some of the other concubines want to practise their dancing, and there isn't room for it in our quarters." Scarlet knew that she shouldn't have asked that first question, but she'd been so shocked at being addressed as 'madam', with every indication of respect, that she'd answered the Cetra's courtesy with rudeness.

"You aren't here as a slave, you're here as one of Cloud's guests. And you're a concubine, concubines always have special privileges. I take it your fellow concubines want to practise a pretty active form of dance, one with a lot of jumping around?"

"Yes. It's called mariatha." She offered the name of the style as an apology of sorts for her earlier lack of manners, without expecting the way the other woman seemed to recognise it.

"The oak training hall should be available now. I can show you and your fellow concubines there if you'd like?"

"Yes please. Ah...I'm Scarlet, would you like to watch the practice?" She turned to return to the rooms Tseng had assigned them as she spoke, noting absently that the other woman almost automatically took up a protective stance as she walked beside Scarlet.

"If none of the dancers would mind. And I'm called Brangwen."

"They're used to having people watching them, even when they're just practising." Scarlet shrugged one shoulder and smiled at the guard. "But you can ask if they have any problems with it if you think it's necessary." And she did, although Scarlet wasn't sure whether or not her reference to _Scarlet's_ invitation for her to watch was a subtle manipulation of the dancers, or a veiled rebuke to her. It didn't really make a difference - both would imply a level of subtlety she could respect, and it was no concern of Brangwen's how Rowan allowed Scarlet to run her harem.

The hall Brangwen took them to was empty, as she'd expected, and from the look on Elena's face it fitted the dancers' needs. A pity the seating was so limited, but she didn't say anything as she took a seat on one of the benches near the door, and Brangwen joined her without commenting.

Scarlet always enjoyed watching Elena dancing, but she felt obliged to pay as much attention to the others as to her lover, especially when Nadia went for a particularly spectacular leap she'd been having problems with. She managed to land safely, and Scarlet applauded briefly, calling out congratulations. Maybe she shouldn't have done that, because Cathryn lost her balance on her next spin, and Scarlet wasn't quite sure how Elena managed to not only avoid Cathryn's flailing hand, but catch her briefly, giving her enough support that she stood up unharmed afterwards.

"Wow! The dancer in amber is _very_ good."

"Yes, and she's the youngest of our dancers. Gorgeous isn't she?" Even in the loose trousers and shirt that made up Elena's mariatha costumes you could see how slim she was, and she displayed her grace and athleticism in a way Scarlet could only envy. She was far too top-heavy to be a dancer of any sort, and she'd regretted that when she was younger, even though she wouldn't give up her large breasts for anything.

"I suppose so. But...she dances the mariatha as it was created, with energy and leashed aggression, not as part of the passionless show the other two are putting on." Scarlet didn't understand that comment, but then all she knew about mariatha dancing was that it looked beautiful and Elena had to spend a lot of time training for it.

"This isn't something they've rehearsed, or agreed beforehand. They're just each practising whatever moves they want to use." And if _she_ could see that then Brangwen should be able to.

"Oh yes." Laughter filled Brangwen's voice as she responded dying away when she began discussing Elena. "I can see that it's nothing like a polished performance, but the one in amber is dancing _around_ the other two, reacting to and anticipating their movements, and you can see how much she enjoys it. The other two ignore their surroundings to a large degree, expecting the floor they land on to be perfect, and that there's room for what they want to do, and their pleasure in the dance doesn't show."

"You have a point there." Nadia didn't like dancing the mariatha at all, and even Cathryn didn't love it the way Elena did. Scarlet was expecting a very pleasant session of lovemaking to follow this.


	5. Chapter 5

"You know you could just leave this to our lawyers." Brangwen smiled at Cloud, she knew that his protest was just for form's sake, at least it was now, he'd been serious the first few times.

"Why? We haven't been really arguing over any of this, and we're getting through it all, even if it's taking us a while." And Brangwen couldn't afford to pay a good enough lawyer to produce an espousal contract that was fair to her - and letting Cloud hire her a lawyer to do this would be a recipe for disaster. She wished Cloud was willing to let this drop, or spend more time working through their contract with her, that they could get through more than two or three clauses before he insisted they were finished for the day, but it wasn't as if this was delaying anything, not yet anyway. Their wedding wasn't scheduled for another two weeks, for what _should_ be two or three days before Brangwen ovulated, at least by her count.

"Yeah. The _only_ reason I'm doing this with you is that you're willing to accept most of the espousal contract I negotiated with Rowan as is." He hadn't told Brangwen that before, and she blinked in surprise, resisting the temptation to tell him _why_ she'd only asked to renegotiate the clauses that were specific to Rowan and her lifestyle and wouldn't fit Brangwen's.

"Most of it works for our espousal as well as it would for yours with Rowan, at least once the name's been changed. So, where are we now Palmer?" The sooner they got started the more likely it was that they'd do three clauses, or maybe even four before Cloud decided he'd had enough.

"Yes Brangwen. The next clause is as follows: 'Rowan Ashe shall start trying to conceive another child by the Planet's Weapon no more than three years after her previous child has been born, until she has given birth to five children or one of his offspring proves to be a high noble. From the time that each child is weaned until she is ready to start trying to conceive again Rowan Ashe has the right to remove herself and her household to her own home.' How do you wish to alter it?" The human was looking more at Cloud than at Brangwen but that was perfectly understandable; he outranked her by any measure, and all Brangwen cared about was that the man was ready to write down what they decided on.

"I can't do anything to change how often you have to try for children. It's my duty to do everything in my power to produce offspring that can be acknowledged as my heirs in the event there is no true Planet's Weapon to follow me." Cloud was deadly serious as he explained, and Brangwen nodded her understanding, although if he was serious about producing potential heirs he needed to consider bedding Elena - but she respected his love for Sephiroth too much to tell him that.

"Agreed. It's the second half that I wanted to discuss. Palmer, copy the first sentence over substituting my name for Rowan's. Unless you have a problem with that Cloud?"

"No. What did you want to talk about regarding the second sentence then?" Cloud leaned towards her just a bit in an flatteringly attentive posture, something that Brangwen was fairly sure was sincere. Still, she had to wonder if he was pretending to be dense, or if he really was this oblivious to her background and social status.

"I don't have a household separate from yours as Rowan does, nor do I maintain a home elsewhere." She couldn't afford that, not if she wanted to save for when and if she retired.

"So it isn't really offering you anything to balance what you have to give the way it balances things for Rowan. What do you want then?" She hadn't expected that sort of instant empathy, but she appreciated it.

"To go back to active duty as part of your guard between weaning one child and trying to conceive the next." She didn't want to give up her entire life to serve as Cloud's broodmare, and she was scared that was what would happen if she didn't make sure she could do something useful. It had happened to other commoners who'd espoused to high nobility, at least that's how it had looked from the outside, and she didn't think she could transfer her skills to anything else. And she loved being part of Cloud's guard, loved the challenge, the constant push to improve herself and her skills and the support she was given to do so.

"I..." Cloud sighed and rubbed his forehead. "I'm not sure how appropriate that is. I know I don't want you pulling bodyguard duty, even when you wouldn't be endangering our child by taking risks like that."

"Exclude bodyguard duty then?"

"Agreed. But I want to talk to Sephiroth about this as well. Palmer, here's the second sentence; 'From the time that each child is weaned until she is ready to start trying to conceive again Brangwen Cuprite may return to active duty in, no make that _with_ Cloud Strife's guard, with the exception that she may not undertake bodyguard duty.' And I'll ask Sephiroth to talk with you if there's an issue with that according to our traditions. Can you accept that?"

"Yes." It was more than she'd expected, and she appreciated it - and if she couldn't be part of Cloud's guard by tradition she was sure there was an acceptable alternative. "Palmer, what's the next clause?"

"Rowan Ashe and Cloud Strife shall not interfere in any way with the other's inner household." As Palmer spoke Brangwen could see Cloud set his jaw with a hint of anger in his eyes.

"I'm not going to let you mess with Sephiroth or Tseng." Then Cloud frowned, a more thoughtful look coming over his face. "But I'm sharing Elena with you, and this doesn't give you anything in return for not interfering. So, what do you want?" All she'd considered was making sure that she had access to Elena, Brangwen had recognised the imbalance in that clause, but there'd been other clauses imbalanced in her favour. Still, her brother had asked if she could do anything to help the clan as Cloud's spouse...

"Give a certain number of low level contracts to my clan every year. Messenger gigs, that sort of thing." Brangwen knew that her family couldn't handle anything more than that, and even though nepotism was a fact of life that was about as far as she was willing to go.

"The Cuprite Clan?" Cloud waited for Brangwen's nod before he continued. "I can do that. Palmer, take this down. 'Brangwen Cuprite shall not interfere in Cloud Strife's inner household with the exception that she has authority over the concubine Elena and any future concubines Cloud Strife buys with the specific intent of sharing them with her.' And this is a new clause. 'The Cuprite Clan shall receive a minimum of one contract per calendar month from Cloud Strife that is within their advertised skills.' I'll follow your advice and contract them as messengers for semi-formal mail. Will that work for you?"

"Yes. Thank you." It was a lot more than she'd expected, and it was likely to bring her family into contact with nobles, which might lead to additional contracts for them.

"You're welcome." Cloud stood, stretching in an implicit dismissal. "Palmer, you can go now. Brangwen, you might want to talk to Elena before the wedding, I don't see any reason you have to wait on signing our contract before you get involved with her." Was that an order or a hint? Brangwen blinked to buy time to think of a response.

"I didn't want to presume, but I can see how she might be feeling anxious. I'll speak to her today." With that Brangwen bowed slightly to Cloud in farewell and followed Palmer out of the room.


	6. Chapter 6

Elena jumped a bit as she heard a knock at her door, but a deep breath settled her nerves enough for her to invite whoever it was in. She just wanted to meet this Brangwen, to get a bit of an idea about how she was supposed to behave, and with every knock at her door she tensed up in anticipation of meeting the woman who would control her life for the next few years. Ironically most of her current stress was coming from the very courtesy she'd been so impressed by, from the fact that even Cloud, her owner, would knock before entering her room.

The woman entering was one of Cloud's guards, and a woman, so probably Brangwen and Elena sunk to her knees, spreading her skirts around her to hide the faint shaking of her hands as she bowed her head.

"Elena?"

"Yes madam." Elena looked up at the woman and forced a small smile, hoping she hadn't said or done the wrong thing already.

"Get up, you don't have to kneel to me." She held out a hand to help Elena up, and Elena felt her smile ease to something more natural as she put her hand in the other woman's. "And I'm Brangwen, you can use my name."

"Ah, yes Brangwen." She wasn't beautiful the way Rowan was, but Brangwen _was_ attractive, handsome, with an almost masculine look about her whole attitude and her eyes were a striking, almost golden, brown. "Would you care to sit down?" Brangwen hadn't released her hand and she used that to lead her over to the group of three upholstered chairs set near the window, assuming the Cetra's agreement. It wasn't as if she was strong enough to force a warrior caste to do anything she didn't want to, and Brangwen didn't object, not even speaking until they were both sitting down.

"Thank you. You know how to dance the mariatha, don't you?"

"Ah, yes Brangwen." How did she...of course, Brangwen must have been the guard who'd shown them where they could practice on Rowan's courtship visit and watched with Scarlet. "But I haven't had the opportunity to practice in the last week or so."

"Why not? Have you been forbidden to or something?" A hint of anger coloured Brangwen's voice, and Elena felt warmed by the thought that it was on her behalf.

"No, I just didn't want to leave my room in case you came to meet me and couldn't find me." Or couldn't be bothered to look.

"I wasn't sure I should come to see you before I signed my contract with Cloud, but...Cloud told me that you'd wanted to talk with me." Brangwen leaned forward, resting one hand against Elena's cheek with a smile. "You were the dancer wearing an amber costume when I saw you practising your mariatha, weren't you?"

"Yes, I was." Elena was glad to know that she'd made enough of an impression for Brangwen to remember her, even if she did have to ask for confirmation.

"You were the best dancer there, the only one who danced with the passion the mariatha deserves." Brangwen sat back, her expression hinting at an almost reverence as she spoke about Elena's dancing.

"Thank you. I only asked to learn an active form of dance for my art, I never expected to love the mariatha as I do." And her craft of gem carving had turned out to be more enjoyable than she'd expected as well.

"It isn't really surprising that you were taught the mariatha then, it's got a long history, and it's very important to the warrior caste. A lot of us learn how to dance it ourselves when we're young." That was news to Elena, neither of her previous warrior caste owners had indicated anything like that. "I know all of Cloud's guard know how to dance the mariatha, and I'd like to dance with you at some point, nothing set, just free dancing together."

"If you would enjoy that. Do you want to dance with me today?" She wasn't sure why she offered - Elena wanted to be in practice if she was going to dance with her mistress, but Brangwen had asked so wistfully that she couldn't help responding to that desire.

"No, not today." She frowned and one hand moved to rest on her lower belly for a moment. "I wouldn't want to give it less than my full concentration. Not to dance with someone who uses as pure a style as you do. And I couldn't do that today."

"Cramps?" Elena wasn't sure what Brangwen meant by describing her style as 'pure', unless it was the fact that as a concubine she had more time and energy to devote to something like dancing while fighters couldn't afford to waste too much energy on something so purely ornamental. Or maybe it had to do with the way she was speaking of mariatha as something almost spiritual, like the way some of her teachers had described it and the way it almost felt like a meditation at times.

"A bit yes. Not enough to stop me fighting if I have to, but enough that I'd go for stuff I don't really have to think about when it comes to training. When are you due?"

"In about two weeks." Elena didn't even have to think about her answer - it was Brangwen's right to know.

"So, I'll make arrangements to meet you for a dance in about a week." Brangwen stood, and Elena knew that this...meeting, interview, whatever it was, was almost over. It had eased some of her worries about belonging to Cloud but being...assigned to his spouse, but she still didn't feel as if she knew Brangwen even as well as she'd known the Cetra who'd interviewed her with an eye to buying her.

"If you want to, I'll be available any time. But I intend to spend the mornings practising my mariatha from now on, unless you wish me to do otherwise?"

"No, that's fine, on most days anyway. I'll come to see you after in the afternoons and I'll tell you the day before I want to dance with you. But...Cloud said you wanted to meet me, was there something you wanted to ask about specifically?"

"Yes, I want permission to cut my hair short."

"You need permission - never mind." Brangwen shook her head quickly and Elena took that as a refusal, before she continued speaking. "How short do you want to cut it?"

"Somewhere between just beneath my ears and to my shoulders." She'd _prefer_ to get her hair cut to just beneath her ears, but she'd settle for having it just touching her shoulders.

"Hmm...that sounds reasonable enough. Go ahead. I'll see you tomorrow afternoon." And with that she turned and walked out.

**Note: I'm beginning to wonder if it's worth putting this fic up here on , since I haven't received any reviews on it. Please consider showing me that you're interested, even if it focuses on an OC. Or if you see Brangwen as Sueish or uninteresting please explain why.**


	7. Chapter 7

It was an honour that Aeris was willing to check her fertility and health the day before her wedding to Cloud, and confirm Reese's assessment that she could carry a child to term successfully. Brangwen found it faintly ludicrous that the Planet's Heart didn't have any role in the ceremony, even though she could legitimately perform it, but she had no real preferences on the matter, had never expected to espouse, let alone marry, so she would accept Cloud's choice. And she _certainly_ wasn't going to be discourteous enough to complain about Aeris being late for their meeting in the infirmary.

Still, it was a bit boring, and she'd already stripped in preparation for a _full_ examination, so she began working through a series of flexibility exercises and she was kneeling on the floor, arched back until the top of her head touched her heels when Aeris walked in.

"I shouldn't really be surprised that you're so flexible, but it still surprises me every single time I see someone as muscular as you do something like that."

"Does that bother you my healer liege?" Brangwen twisted around to face Aeris as she stood, smiling at her hopefully.

"No. I know that Cloud and Sephiroth are both surprised by my touch with plants and by the things my caste can do. Shall we start by taking your weight and height?" Aeris gestured to the scales and Brangwen recognised the implied order, even if she hadn't expected Aeris to be willing to waste her time repeating measurements taken only a month ago. But she wasn't a healer, she couldn't understand what they needed, nor how they perceived the lives around them and made their assessments.

Aeris had a faintly distant look in her eyes when she touched Brangwen as she measured her height, a look that told her the healer caste was measuring more than just how tall she was, and that she was more skilled than Reese, who had to almost trance to perceive much about how her body was working internally - more skilled, or perhaps simply more powerful, it didn't really matter.

"You need to eat more, that or train less. I'm not happy with how little body fat you have."

"Is it unhealthy then?" Brangwen knew that people needed _some_ fat in their bodies, as a reserve against lean times and to provide insulation, but she hadn't experienced any problems, and Reese had never hinted that she should eat more.

"No...not for your normal lifestyle. But I'd prefer a higher percentage of body fat if you're trying to get pregnant." Aeris nodded at one of the exam tables as she spoke. "Go and lie down on your stomach."

"I understand." Brangwen moved to the exam table as Aeris pulled back to note down her observations, pillowing her head on her folded arms. "I'll try to eat more then. Unless you'd prefer me to cut my training down to two hours a day." The minimum level of training required of Cloud's guards, and something most of them chose to exceed.

"I think that would be a better option." Aeris' hands were on her back now, almost giving her a massage as they explored every inch of her skin with purely professional interest. "Training too much might well stress your body to the point where you miscarry early enough to mistake it for a normal period. I take it your cycles are regular?"

"Yes my healer liege." Aeris made a small sound of displeasure while her hands gripped at Brangwen's ass for a fraction of a second, and Brangwen had to know what had caused it. "Is there something wrong?"

"Use my name. I know we haven't interacted much, but you're going to be Cloud's spouse. I don't want you to keep on being so formal with me." Aeris was running her hands down Brangwen's legs as she spoke, and Brangwen took a moment to recover from her surprise at the invitation.

"Ah...if that's what you'd prefer...Aeris." Brangwen heard Aeris step away as those soft hands lifted from her ankles. "You were asking about my cycles?"

"Yes. But first, roll over onto your back, legs open and rest your arms by your sides. How regular are your cycles? Can you predict them to the day, or just within a range of days? And how wide is that range?" Aeris started running her hands over the front of Brangwen's body once she was on her back, and Brangwen tilted her head back to give her easier access to her throat while she thought about the healer's questions.

"Within a four day range. My cycle's long, I think it averages out at thirty three days, but it can be as little as thirty one or as much as thirty five."

"Ah, that explains what I'm sensing. It won't be one of your fertile days tomorrow." So they wouldn't _need_ to consummate the wedding that night, and even if the humans would expect it they didn't have to cater to them in this. They were catering to the humans enough by having a wedding ceremony at all, not that Brangwen minded that, not once she'd put a stop to the idea that she'd wear a dress for it, or that Morvoren would. Brangwen had heard that at one time humans had watched when their leaders consummated their marriages, but she found that idea repulsive and more than a little barbaric. "I'll check you every day after the wedding and tell you when it's your fertile time. And I'll repeat that every month until you conceive. As well as when you tell me that you've started trying to conceive your second child." And presumably every child after that.

"Thank you Aeris." Reese could have done that as well, but from the way Aeris was speaking she'd find it easier that he would.

"You're welcome. One final thing." Aeris' hand had been resting lightly on Brangwen's abdomen, but now it slid down to her groin and she hooked two fingers inside her, while her free hand came to rest on Brangwen's cheek. "As Cloud's spouse you will have the power to affect Sephiroth. If you do _anything_ with the intention of hurting him, or making him unhappy I will tear your mind apart, until all you can think of is carrying babies for Cloud. Do we understand one another?"

"Yes Aeris." The healer's sweet, innocent smile was probably the most terrifying thing about her threat. Brangwen _knew_ that Aeris would have no moral qualms whatsoever about raping her mind to make one of her worst nightmares a reality, and one which she wouldn't even be able to resent.

"Good." Aeris kissed her forehead and pulled back, moving over to the sink to wash her hands. "I've done everything I need to do. You can get dressed and leave now."

**Note: Brangwen has absolutely no interest in being anything but a guard, even if she had been interested in anything else the Cuprite clan couldn't really afford to finance a career as a mariatha master for her (since mariatha masters are semi-religious figures for warrior caste). Cetra society isn't as rigid as it looks from the stories on here, but I didn't have any reason to write Rowan in her guise as merchant princess (and I'm not too confident I could pull it off anyway) and the stories about her family aren't going up here on . I'm glad to see that Brangwen doesn't come across as a Mary Sue, since she was introduced solely for the purpose of marrying Cloud, but I can see how someone as normal as her might not be entirely interesting.**


	8. Chapter 8

Brangwen started to pace with impatience as they waited for the call to tell them everything was in place, while Morvoren sat and watched her calmly.

"Brangwen, relax." Morvoren stood and caught her elbow in a single smooth motion, and Brangwen came to an immediate halt, waiting to hear what else her cousin had to say. "You don't want people to see that you're anxious about this, or impatient, anything other than serene confidence could easily be interpreted as weakness."

"Yes, you're right. How do I look?" Brangwen stepped back and spread her arms for inspection.

"Ready for inspection." A wry smile twisted Morvoren's lips as she replied. "And you look comfortable in what you're wearing, even if it isn't armour."

"Good." Brangwen let her own amusement show. "I can't quite believe Rowan was actually planning to wear a _dress_ to her wedding."

"Nor I. I understand why she wanted her concubines in dresses, but letting her own legs get tangled up in skirts to please the humans?" Morvoren shook her head in bemusement.

"She was going to come to the cathedral in a carriage, with her bridesmaids, not riding the way we are, but still..." Weapons had been another issue. Rowan hadn't intended to carry any to the ceremony, or to arm her concubines; Brangwen could understand that much, concubines didn't usually have Tseng's skill with weapons and her usual axes were just too ostentatious, but she had insisted on wearing her smallest axe at her belt, with Morvoren carrying a short sword balanced by a dirk.

Morvoren jumped a bit as her phone rang, but she answered quickly and confirmed that everything was ready for them to set off. Brangwen followed Morvoren out to where their chocobos were waiting and let the groom holding her blue boost her up into the saddle to keep her clothes from wrinkling too badly. She kept her face still as she guided Saphir through the streets with minimal motions of her legs and hands, maintaining a parade seat to put on the best show that she could.

"Do you have the barrier I lent you equipped?"

"Yes Morvoren." It was a bit late to be asking that, but Brangwen understood her cousin's concern, even if she wasn't used to thinking of _herself_ as a protectee. And the materia satisfied the 'something borrowed' part of that little rhyme humans expected brides to use in selecting their wedding outfits. "I hid it under my shirt. And I know, if we're attacked I'm supposed to let you fight and stay out of it if I can. I won't make it any harder for you."

"Thanks. And I was thinking that I might start trying for a child with Angeal. Cloud doesn't have much in the way of family, and your child won't have the chance to spend much time with the clan."

"Sephiroth might agree to a few visits, but not enough to form any strong friendships. Thanks. I'd been worried about that, even if it isn't really supposed to be my concern." It _would_ have been her concern if she'd decided to have children by a lover, the way Morvoren was, although she could reasonably send her offspring back to the clan as long as she sent enough money to take care of them as well, but as Cloud's spouse she could hand her children over to Sephiroth once she'd weaned them. "I'm a bit surprised that you're willing to keep your child with you...or were you intending to move Angeal into your quarters and let him take care of the child?"

"He doesn't have anywhere near as many demands on his time as I do, so why not? Cloud's given his approval already."

"Congratulations then." They didn't say anything more until they reached the cathedral, and Brangwen was relieved to see that the larger than usual saddle blanket had minimised the amount of Saphir's feather that had stuck to her jacket and trousers, even if she still had to wait for one of the attendants waiting to take their chocobos to brush the small feathers off, while another gave her boots one last polish.

"Pity I wasn't riding a green like you are." Although Morvoren had needed a brush down as well.

"The feathers would still show on the dark green velvet, but wool might have been a better choice."

"It might have, but I didn't think about needing to be brushed down when I was talking to the tailors. Thank you." Brangwen smiled at the man who handed her the bouquet, and shifted about to hold it in front of her for visual impact, rather than ease of carrying. She didn't mind this tradition, since _Aeris_ had grown the flowers she was carrying, and she set off into the cathedral, proceeding down the aisle at a steady pace, to allow everyone to look at her as much as they wanted. When she reached the altar she handed her bouquet off to Morvoren and turned to face half towards Cloud and half towards the priest, making sure that she _looked_ attentive, even though she was tuning out most of his sermon on marriage and whatever else he was talking about.

"Do you, Cloud Strife, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife, to love, cherish and support, in sickness and in health, for richer and for poorer, as long as you both shall live?" Brangwen hadn't cared much about the vows, as long as Cloud wasn't promising to protect _her_, not when it was her duty to protect him, but he'd insisted on changing her vows as she'd altered his.

"I do."

"Do you, Brangwen Cuprite, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband, to love, honour and serve, in sickness and in health, for richer and for poorer, as long as you both shall live?"

"I do."

"Where are the rings?"

"Here." Sephiroth presented them on a little cushion, dark blue velvet, Brangwen noted irrationally, her mind skipping to how it was a perfect match for his and Cloud's outfits.

"Cloud, take Brangwen's ring and place it on her finger, repeating the words 'With this ring I thee wed.'" Cloud slid her sapphire 'engagement' ring off first, bracketing it with the wedding ring, and a third, narrower gold band, indented to frame the stone, before sliding all three rings onto her finger.

"Now you Brangwen, take Cloud's ring and place it on his finger, repeating the words 'With this ring I thee wed.'" There was a faintly sour look on the priest's face as Brangwen obeyed, although she couldn't have said why, but he pronounced them 'man and wife' and invited Cloud to 'kiss the bride' to complete the ceremony. Cloud only offered her a chaste, almost formal kiss, something she knew was only him being polite, even if they hoped at least some of the people watching would assume it was about restraint, rather than the lack of desire she knew it truly was. Then she took the bouquet back from Morvoren and they walked out of the cathedral together, to where two gold chocobos were waiting for them, and Cloud confirmed in a whisper that one of them was hers now.


	9. Chapter 9

"Cloud? Aren't you going to Brangwen tonight?" Cloud really didn't like the mixture of resignation and bitterness in Sephiroth's voice. His consort had always seemed so comfortable with the knowledge that he needed a spouse, but now it looked as if he was hurting because only naturally conceived Cetra could evoke even a minor response from the Planet - and his heir had to have a major response.

"Not if you'd rather I didn't." Brangwen had told him that she was fertile today, according to Aeris, but Sephiroth mattered more to him.

"Cloud...you _have_ to get Brangwen pregnant, as soon as possible, or people will wonder why not." Sephiroth stood, and began pacing, keeping the bed between him and Cloud, even if he didn't think his consort had planned that. "She's fertile, and the two of you are interfertile, or you would have had to call off that espousal too, so the only reason she wouldn't get pregnant is if you weren't bedding her. She warned me that she expected you to go to her tonight, so I wouldn't worry about why you came to our bed late tonight, or...if you chose to stay with her."

That was enough. The way Sephiroth's voice broke on that last sentence, the hints of pain and near betrayal in his words was too much for Cloud and he vaulted over the bed to pull his beloved into his arms.

"You _never_ have to worry about that, about me choosing her over you. You are the most important person in my life and _nothing_ is going to change that, not ever. I'm sorry if I ever gave you reason to think otherwise. I'm sorry to have hurt you, it's something I never wanted to do." He stroked Sephiroth's back, trying to soothe away the almost convulsive shuddering that had started as soon as he took hold of him.

"I know, I know." Sephiroth's voice was choked with held back emotion. "I don't think you get what hurts most though. I thought I'd accepted that you'd have to be with Brangwen when she's fertile, but I shouldn't have had to hear it from her. I like her, and it was kind of her to warn me that you'd have to be with her tonight, but she shouldn't have needed to, you should have told me." Sephiroth was right, he should have heard it from Cloud, but Cloud hadn't wanted to think about what he'd have to do with Brangwen, because he couldn't help seeing it as a betrayal of Sephiroth.

"You need children and I can't give them to you. I understand that, Morgan made sure of that, he reminded me that you'd have to take a spouse for that purpose often enough that I thought I was prepared, especially since Brangwen's always been good to me. If I could give you children I _would_, you know that?"

"Yes, yes I do." He pressed his lips to Sephiroth's temple and waited, letting him say whatever else he needed to say.

"If I could give you children I'd carry as many of them as it took, as many as you needed, and then maybe you wouldn't need Brangwen, but I can't, and you do need her. I wish I'd been born a woman, so I could do this for you, but I can't."

"Sephiroth, don't wish that. If you were a woman we might not even have met, not with how weird humans can be about that sort of thing. Think about how much trouble Godo's having over in Wutai with the noble clans about Yuffie." She was qualified, competent and trained her entire life to take over the rule of Wutai once Godo died, but now there was pressure for him to declare her newborn brother his heir, and while she'd only had sisters all the humans had wanted her married off and breeding young so that her sons could inherit the rule of the country with her _husband_ as their regent.

Sephiroth's laughter was just a little bitter, and Cloud hoped with all his heart that that it wouldn't turn to tears or hysteria; he really couldn't handle that and Sephiroth had seemed on the verge of some sort of breakdown earlier. "You'd think they'd realise they were lucky to be allowed to retain their positions ruling Wutai, and accept that inheritance would have to follow Cetra law, not human, but they don't. I think we'd have still met though, Hojo always intended me as a weapon, so I can't imagine ShinRa not making use of me in Wutai." If Sephiroth had been a woman, and as beautiful as he was now Cloud could all too easily imagine what other use ShinRa could have made of him from what he'd heard about the man, but if Sephiroth hadn't thought of that _he_ certainly wasn't going to bring it up.

"It might have taken longer though, so you might not have been there when we were trying to awaken the others." And they might not have succeeded without his help and protection, even if the warrior caste council hadn't really wanted to admit that. Cloud shook his head, dismissing his line of thought before it turned morbid. "It doesn't matter, I love you, as you are. I wouldn't ever want you to be different." Except for wishing the Cetra who'd put those restrictions in his mind had been less vindictive, had left him at least the ability to defend himself.

"Thank you." Sephiroth's laughter had ended now, and his voice was calm, almost empty, so Cloud let him go when Sephiroth pushed at his chest, giving him a soft, sad smile. "You still need to go to Brangwen tonight, and it would be cruel of you to make her wait too long."

"Yeah, I guess so." He didn't like leaving Sephiroth when he wasn't happy, but he didn't think he could do anything to change that right now. "Are you sure you'll be okay?"

"Yes, I'll get Tseng after you've gone, for comfort." That made sense, except that Sephiroth didn't need to go looking for Tseng himself.

"Don't bother, I'll tell him that you want him on my way to Brangwen's rooms." He'd made Sephiroth angry now, he could tell from the fire in his eyes, but at least that was better than him being sad.

"You will not go to her through the harem. People need to _see_ that you're going to see her, and you can't treat her like a dirty secret." That didn't make sense - he'd married Brangwen in front of a live audience numbering in the thousands, and there'd been millions watching through the broadcasts. But if it made Sephiroth happy he'd go to her through the corridors, even though the primary entrance to her quarters wasn't even on the same corridor as the primary entrance to his.

"Can I come back through the harem at least then?" He was teasing, but Sephiroth went pale and bowed his head, the anger in his eyes fading away.

"I didn't mean that as an order, I just don't want you to shame her. She is my friend after all."

Cloud lifted Sephiroth's chin with the back of his fingers, and kissed his lips without demanding entrance. "I didn't take it as an order, I took it as much needed advice, and I was asking for further advice. Would it shame Brangwen if I came back through the harem?"

"No, it wouldn't. That way no one would know how long you spent with her, they might even assume you stayed with her through the night."

"Thank you. I'll try not to wake you if you're sleeping when I return." He didn't stay to hear what Sephiroth replied to that, or even if he replied to it; it was hard enough to leave him as it was.


	10. Chapter 10

Frustration and humiliation battled for dominance inside Brangwen as Cloud walked away from her. She should have known better, should have realised that all that mattered to Cloud was that she had a functioning womb, but she'd hoped otherwise, that he could desire her for herself. Even though he'd waited until she was fertile to consummate their espousal she'd still hoped it wouldn't just be about producing heirs, that he'd want to have fun with her, but his total lack of arousal and response to anything she'd tried had made it abundantly, humiliatingly, clear that her hope was in vain. At least he'd left through the harem, hiding her failure to consummate their marriage and how little he cared for her.

She blinked, dashing the tears she hadn't let herself notice before from her eyes, and stood to follow him, to look for Elena. She'd restrained herself until now, resisted the temptation to command Elena's attentions, or to make advances to Cloud herself - it wasn't appropriate for a commoner to start things with any noble, let alone one of the Planet's Chosen, even if she was his spouse. And she'd wanted Elena to come to her, if she had the spirit for it, that or to share the mariatha with her and seduce her that way. But she needed the reassurance Elena could offer, that she was desirable, and that it wasn't a chore to bed her.

"Brangwen?" Elena wasn't in bed yet, but she wasn't fully dressed either. And Brangwen was pleased to see that despite her surprise Elena greeted her with a smile.

"Elena, come here, please."

The other woman obeyed without question, hesitating when she reached Brangwen before pressing up against her and wrapping her arms around her waist. "I thought Cloud was visiting you tonight, Sephiroth said something about not being alone when he came for Tseng, and it's been nearly a week since you married him."

"He was." Brangwen only realised her hand had tightened in Elena's hair when she made a small sound of pain, and she immediately let go, moving to stroke that hand down the woman's back instead. "He left. You didn't see him come through here?"

"I decided to work a bit on my gem carving after Sephiroth collected Tseng, and the gear for that's here." Elena pushed back a bit, and Brangwen let her go, wondering if _Elena_ would only be with her because she had to, if she was just a lot better at hiding her reluctance than Cloud was. "We might be more comfortable on my bed. It's warm enough, but I'd rather sit down to talk, or if it isn't talking that's on your mind I'd prefer our first time in a bed."

Brangwen laughed then, from relief as well as amusement and let her go, allowing Elena to lead her to bed by the hand. "I guess you're right.

"You do want me then, want to have sex with me and you find me attractive?" She didn't like how _needy_ she sounded, but the question was out before she could stop it.

"Yes." Elena didn't look as if she was going to say anything further, but that simple answer wasn't enough to make Brangwen feel better, so she pressed a bit further, in a way she _never_ would have pushed a fellow warrior.

"Why, what is it about me that you find attractive, that appeals to you?"

"Do you know how beautiful your eyes are, with that golden glow to them?" It had to be a rhetorical question, any answer would seem egotistical or self-serving, but no one had ever described her odd yellow eyes as _beautiful_ before, and Brangwen knew she was blushing at the compliment. "And I like it that you're just a little bit taller than I am, just the height to make kissing comfortable. I like your muscles, the way they show how dedicated you are to improving yourself and maintaining your condition. You've been kind to me, given me space to adjust to the idea of being with you, and you didn't have to. And the most attractive thing about you is how well you dance the mariatha with me."

"I'm not that good." She wasn't, but she'd felt a connection with Elena from the first time she'd seen her dance, and that more than anything had been why she'd agreed to become Cloud's spouse, the hope that the connection might run both ways.

"Do you really believe that? You're better than anyone I've danced with outside the training halls, and it feels, I don't know, more real when I dance with you than it ever has before. I can predict your movements better than I can with any other partner, you seem to predict my movements in a way no one else has, and it doesn't make sense, because I've only danced with you twice."

"If you were warrior caste you'd know what that meant. You'd have been taught all the legends about pairs who can dance that way." At least if she'd had a proper upbringing she would have, and finally Brangwen could believe she'd found the soul who completed her own. She kissed Elena then, slow, reverent, and pushed her down onto the bed, one hand resting on her shoulder, the other moving from where it had supported her back to rest on Elena's hip. "If I was any sort of noble I wouldn't be doing this, not now." Knowing how much she mattered to Elena, that Elena had responded to their mariatha as she had, would have had to be enough for her. "Not unless you refused to be my consort outright."

"Consort? But we're not..."

"In love? No. But not all nobles choose their consorts because of that. Some do it as a political thing, to get an alliance with another caste, and sometimes, despite that saying, it's just lust. Rowan's a bit of a romantic, probably because her family are all commoners, and Cloud's relationship with Sephiroth's the stuff of legends, but it isn't always like that." Her hands had been running over Elena's upper body as she spoke, and now she slid one hand under the waistband of her loose silk trousers while the other moved to unfasten that lacy bra. "Do you need more foreplay?"

"Ah, yes...please." Her knee came up as she responded, between Brangwen's legs, in _just_ the right position for her to press herself against that firm silk-clad thigh. Elena giggled and kept her leg in place, always pressing up against Brangwen's groin, as she moved, kissing her breasts and stroking her sides before moving back up to focus on her neck, kissing at the base of her throat while ghosting feather light touches from just behind her ear to the nape of her neck while Brangwen's other hand petted Elena's belly. Still, that leg was the only way Elena was returning Brangwen's attentions, and she didn't want that.

"You're allowed to touch me back you know."

"I wasn't sure." There was something almost hurt in Elena's eyes, and Brangwen pulled back a bit, waiting to see if she'd say anything else.

"Of course you are." She decided to make it a bit of a joke, even though it was also the truth. "How else can I know that you want me?"

"Oh, _Brangwen_!" Elena reached up, pulling Brangwen's head down to hers and kissing her full on the lips.


	11. Chapter 11

Brangwen had woken up feeling vaguely nauseous, and she let herself hope it might be morning sickness. She'd known better than to truly believe that however, and she was disappointed, but not particularly surprised to find that she was bleeding later that day.

She _refused_ to put herself through abother three nights like their first attempt at producing a child - even if that first terrible attempt at consumation had led her to go to Elena earlier than she'd planned and confirmed that the blonde responded to her. But she knew that she wasn't going to get any pleasure from being with Cloud, not when he made it so clear that his only interest in her was the chance to get an heir, rather than taking any pleasure in being with her. So what could she do to make it easier on her, on them both?

She needed Elena, needed to hold her and be held by her, to know that she was wanted for something besides her fertile womb. And then maybe they could dance together afterwards, renew the promise of their mariatha, even if she wasn't at her best. As she looked for her lover Brangwen allowed her mind to wander, running over the times she'd been with Cloud so far, all three of them.

He hadn't been at all aroused that first time, then the second time he'd barely kept his erection long enough to fuck her. She'd almost been surprised to see that he'd climaxed considering that he'd had to force his way into her tense dry flesh. Then that last time she'd wised up a bit and made sure she was ready for him, stroking herself to climax more than once before he arrived so that she'd be relaxed, and pinned him to mkae sure they went at her pace, not his. He'd almost responded better to that than to anything else she'd done, but it had felt far too much like rape for Brangwen to be comfortable repeating it.

She _knew_ better, knew that she couldn't have pinned Cloud if he hadn't let her, not with how young he'd become the Planet's Chosen, but that didn't change how she felt. Thinking back though, she hadn't really gone that much slower than Cloud had the previous day, the big difference had been that she was relaxed, and ready for him, where before she hadn't been. So...she needed to make sure she had time to take her own pleasure first; then she could lie back and let Cloud use her.

"Elena, come with me please." She wanted to do this in her own bedroom, so that Elena didn't feel even remotely trapped when Brangwen made the request that had just come to her.

"Of course." Elena's smile shifted from the welcoming one she'd greeted her with to something more sensual as Brangwen led her from the harem, and once they were in Brangwen's bedroom Elena _pounced_ on her. Brangwen didn't fight it, returning Elena's kisses and just holding her, almost clinging to her, enjoying the aggression Elena was showing in exploring beneath her clothes, such a far cry from that first night. Elena was being far more aggressive than she'd ever dared before, and Brangwen was distantly grateful for her perception in realising how deeply she _needed_ this near-ravishment. Her perception, and her courage, to actually take charge and push Brangwen to climax with an almost vicious twist of her fingers and all without removing a single piece of clothing.

"Are you alright? Do you feel better now?" Elena lifted her clean hand to cradle the left side of Brangwen's face gently.

"Yes, thank you. I...needed that." More than she'd known. Brangwen hadn't realised just how badly those three nights with Cloud had affected her perceptions of her own bedroom, that until this very moment she hadn't managed to relax in here after the way Cloud had rejected her.

"Do you want to tell me about it?" Elena pulled her down to lie on the bed as she spoke, moving carefully, as if she wasn't sure Brangwen would allow this.

"I just had confirmation I'll need to sleep with Cloud again in two to three weeks, I was hoping I'd conceived this month, even though I knew it wasn't that likely."

"Confirmation? You mean..." Elena pulled back a little, moving the hand she'd had between Brangwen's legs so she could look at it. "But I don't see any blood, and I didn't feel a pad or the string of a tampon."

"No, you wouldn't. I use a cup that I put inside myself. Most warrior caste do the same." Something in Elena's expression... "Is it a problem for you?"

"I just don't like the taste of blood, and I'm not particularly comfortable having sex when I'm bleeding." But Elena cuddled back up against her again, holding her and comforting her.

"I see. There's ways to avoid that, bleeding I mean. I think there's some sort of hormonal implant available that would keep you from bleeding for a year." She'd gotten more than a bit of teasing about the almost masochistic way she checked on what contraceptive options were available to any woman who could get a _human_ doctor to prescribe them, but it was turning out to be useful now. "I can ask about getting a human doctor to prescribe that for you if you want?"

"Thank you. I...my second master had me put on the sort of pill that keeps you from having a period as long as you take it, but I had to go off it when he was finished with me." Brangwen was missing something, somewhere, and she frowned, knowing that this was a distraction from what she needed to discuss, and more than willing to take it. "And what about Rowan, if you don't mind telling me?"

"She provided condoms and made it clear she expected us to use them if we had the sort of sex that could lead to pregnancy. But...I worried a bit since I've been here, in case Tseng claimed his right as the first concubine, as Cloud doesn't seem to provide for that." Claimed his right? No, she wouldn't ask, and Brangwen shook her head to clear it of this diversion.

"Right, I'll see to that as soon as I can. But this isn't actually why I brought you here. I wanted to ask if you'd be willing to help me when I try to conceive."

"Ah...how? I'm not sure I understand. I know tricks to arouse a man if that's what you need, but it can be chancy..."

"No, that isn't what I need." Brangwen reassured Elena with a laugh, although maybe she _should_ learn those tricks, if Cloud proved to have difficulties getting hard for her. "I was hoping you'd be willing to be with me before and after Cloud. Before so that I'm relaxed and ready when he comes to me, and after because I understand that climaxing helps a woman conceive."

"It does?" Elena blinked in confusion, seeming oddly innocent.

"Well, that's what my family taught me anyway." And she'd known that her brothers and male cousins had been taught how to please a woman for that very reason, a couple of the more distant cousins had wanted to practise on _her_, not intercourse, but the sort of thing she'd used to please Elena. "So, will you?" Brangwen let go of her lover, allowing her to leave if she found the idea offensive, but Elena looked almost proud.

"Yes, of course I will, if that's what you want." Elena smiled and pressed up against her to kiss Brangwen's throat. "So, do you want to practise a bit now?"

"Why not? But this time I want to take care of you as well."

oxOX()XOxo

Actually no one's pressuring Yuffie directly, because the Wutai noble clans can't quite get it into their heads that she's the one they'd have to talk into abdicating. But she knows how much her father's being pressured and she cares about him more than she did in canon.

Sephiroth wishing to be a woman so he could give Cloud everything he needs is meant to be heartbreaking, and I like mpreg as well, but the Cetra would never allow or accept such an 'abomination' - and more importantly the Planet would probably not favour a child born that way.

Cloud's hurting Brangwen because he's focused so much on not hurting Sephiroth, and he's 'gay' because Sephiroth is a man. If Sephiroth had been a woman, and the soul resonance had still been in place he'd be straight - and he'd probably never have wondered about what it felt like for a man to be taken.

If she was a noble Brangwen would take Elena as her consort, but as she's a commoner (since the Cetra don't have nobility by marriage the way humans do) she can't, which is why she went ahead and had sex with Elena instead of waiting on vows.


	12. Chapter 12

"Cloud, we need to talk." Brangwen didn't really like intruding on Sephiroth and Cloud at breakfast, even if they had Tseng with them as well, but she hadn't been able to find another way to explain her plans for the next time they tried getting her pregnant.

"What about? And can it wait?" _This_ was why she hadn't wanted to do this here and now, and from the way he'd stiffened Sephiroth wasn't very happy either.

"No, not really." She decided not to wait for an invitation to sit down and took a seat beside Sephiroth reaching to rest one hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry Sephiroth, but I'm not pregnant, so we'll need to try again this month."

"I understand. I hoped you'd conceived, but I didn't really expect it." Sephiroth seemed to relax a bit at that, turning to her with a faint smile, oddly grateful. "Will you need Cloud tonight then? It...is getting close to that time again isn't it?"

"Yes, it's getting close to the right time, but I don't know if I'll need Cloud tonight." Brangwen shrugged, deliberately casual. "I'm no healer caste, to know when I am about to ovulate. I'm regular for a warrior caste, and maybe when it comes to our next child I won't need to hear from Aeris to know when we need to try, but for now I can't tell you myself. Cloud, I tried to find another time to speak with you, but you weren't really available to me." Brangwen did her best to keep the bitterness from her voice, but she didn't think she'd succeeded based on the way Tseng and Sephiroth were looking at Cloud now.

"Cloud." Sephiroth reached across the table to take hold of Cloud's hand as he spoke. "It's sweet that you're so devoted to me, but...Brangwen _is_ your spouse. You shouldn't make it impossible for her to see you alone. If nothing else you claimed to love her when you refused Rowan based on her breach of contract; do you really want to be caught in a lie like that?" Now he turned to Brangwen, and there was something displeased in those feline eyes of his. "And Brangwen, I appreciate it that you are reluctant to cut into my time with Cloud, but you do have the right to, and for something as important as this you really should."

"I know." Brangwen let herself laugh as she spoke. "I should have told Cloud that I needed to talk to him alone when we were all eating together. But I refuse to go searching for him in his bedroom or yours. And at least I came to intrude on the three of you now, rather than waiting any longer."

"Ah...maybe you'd rather I wasn't here for this?" Tseng pushed his chair back, an almost panicked look on his face as he started to stand, before Cloud grabbed hold of his wrist, pulling him back down into his seat.

"You haven't finished eating. I'll stop avoiding being alone with you Brangwen, but we can do this some _other_ time."

"Given that it's getting close to Brangwen's fertile time, I don't think you can." Brangwen smiled gratefully at Sephiroth, as he pre-empted her objection - Cloud was far more likely to listen to the man he loved than he was to listen to her. "Brangwen, would you rather speak to Cloud in private, or are you comfortable making arrangements with us listening in?"

"If you're comfortable hearing it, I'm comfortable explaining my plans in front of you. It's about how I'm going to conceive, so _you_ of all people have the right to hear this Sephiroth." Brangwen leaned back in her seat, focusing on Cloud, relieved to see that he'd let go of Tseng, so the man could leave if he wanted.

"Well _I'm_ not comfortable being here for this, so I'll see you both later." With that Tseng gathered his breakfast and coffee onto a tray and set off for the harem. Brangwen looked over to Sephiroth then, just as he was looking back up, and the faint blush on his cheeks was fading.

"If you're going to talk timing and frequency I don't see any problems, but if you want to go into detail on position and technique I'd rather not hear it. I...don't really find women attractive." Sephiroth glanced away then, almost as if he was embarrassed or ashamed, but he continued speaking before Brangwen could reassure him. "I'd rather not know the details of what a man does with a woman, and how it differs from what Cloud does with me."

"I understand. You're everything a consort should be, and so Cloud is the centre of your life. It isn't the sort of love I'd want, but it _is_ the stuff of legends." Brangwen would never say it, but she'd been surprised to realise that Sephiroth could feel desire for Tseng, even if it was born more from a need for comfort than anything else. "All I'll say about positioning is that I'll be on my back waiting for Cloud."

"I see." Sephiroth sounded pleased by that, and he clearly hadn't been disturbed by that vague reference.

"But I don't, not quite. You want me to come to you, but what else? I...know I didn't do very well last time, and I do want to treat you better." Now Cloud reached across the table to take _her_ hand, a sad smile on his face.

"I'll be bluntly honest. There is no way you can make our efforts to produce an heir good for me, no matter what I teach you, so I don't want to even try, not this time. It isn't your fault." And that was a shading of the truth, if not an outright lie. "This...the situation...it's the sort of thing that brings up all of my issues with sex. I...maybe when we're trying for our _next_ child we'll know each other well enough for it to be comfortable for me, but at the moment it's not going to be good for me when I'm with you, even if you had a concubine's training in how to pleasure a woman."

"Right." Cloud pulled his hand back, swallowing in a way that looked painful. "I...don't think you want to explain _why_ this is bothering you so much, do you?"

"Not the more personal stuff." Brangwen might be willing to confide her terror of being treated like nothing more than a brood mare to _Sephiroth_, but not to Cloud. "But...I _trust_ you, I just don't really know you enough to be friends with you, let alone feel anything warmer."

"You too?" Cloud laughed at that. "I was beginning to think I was the only warrior caste who needed more than just lust to really enjoy myself."

"Not the _only_ one, no. But it _is_ rare. Anyway, I'll tell you when I'm going to go to bed if I'm fertile, or since Elena's agreed to help I'll let Tseng know when I get her, give me an hour with her, then come to me. You won't need to bother with foreplay, just fuck me, at least once. If you can manage a second time, or more then that would help, but once will be enough if that's all you can bring yourself to do. Then I'd prefer it if you left so that I can be with Elena again."

"And I can go back to Sephiroth, yes. Would you rather I left through the harem and came to you openly?"

"That would be best." Brangwen glanced at Sephiroth, not really surprised by his confidence, but appreciating his consideration for her reputation.

"And knock before you enter, to make sure you won't be interrupting anything." Brangwen was amused to see that both men blushed, and she only waited for Cloud's agreement before she stood to leave.


End file.
